1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to modular components including mechanisms for removably connecting a power supply to an electronic component, such as the main circuit board of a computer system.
2. Background of the Related Art
Computer systems often have a modular configuration including standardized units or dimensions and using interchangeable components to provide flexibility in system configurations. For example, rack-mountable servers may be designed with industry-standard dimensions and connections for fitting within server bays having corresponding dimensions and connections in a rack. This allows a customized system to be assembled from a selected assortment of servers and other rack-mount equipment to achieve a system having a particular set of capabilities. Likewise, components of rack-mount servers or server systems may include interchangeable modular components, such as modular power supplies that may be removed and replaced.
The connection between a modular power supply and a server system is different than other connections in the server system, such as the connection between a motherboard and an expansion card. Some modular power supplies provide electrical power to the server system over a number of rails at different standard voltages, such as 12V, 5V, 3.3V and ground. Furthermore, certain power supplies may provide multiple rails at the same voltage in order to meet the electrical requirements of the components in the server system.